1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a socket and, in particular, to a refrigerant socket and an air conditioner having the same. The refrigerant socket is connected between an outdoor unit and an indoor unit of the air conditioner.
2. Related Art
An air conditioner includes an outdoor unit, a plurality of indoor units, and a plurality of refrigerant pipes connected between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. The indoor unit is installed indoors to performing heat exchange on indoor air. The outdoor unit is installed outdoors to draw outdoor air and release heat.
When installing the conventional air conditioner, a diameter of the installed refrigerant pipe has to exactly match the outdoor unit and the indoor unit. Therefore, if a room with the installed indoor unit is intended for a different use, a cooling capacity is changed, decoration is changed, brand-new decoration is required, a position of the indoor unit is changed, or etc., the original piping has to be removed to conduct a new installation, there occur problems like wasting piping materials, refrigerant, time, and efforts for the new installation, so the new installation not only is cost-prohibitive and cost-ineffective, but also damages the structure of the building by repeatedly removing and installing the piping. Further, if the refrigerant pipe is already installed in a wall, the wall has to be damaged for installing new piping, so the installation is more troublesome and inconvenient and greatly damaging the structure of the building, which are defects commonly known by people.